Two new works for cello and voices, commissioned by the RPS, will receive premiere performances at King's Place.

The climate crisis we are living through demands that we think differently about our place in the world, understand the effect we have on our environment and that it has on us, and recognise our historical context both in terms of what has come before us and what the future is likely to hold. Join French-British composer Josephine Stephenson, and Spanish composer Raquel García-Tomás, alongside award-winning cellist Nicolas Altstaedt and The Carice Singers for an evening of new music that questions our relationship with an increasingly threatened environment.

Programme: 

Bach Cello Suite No. 1
Ben Nobuto Sol
Raquel García-Tomás  Vols brisés (UK premiere)
Bach Cello Suite No. 5
Dobrinka Tabakova  Turn our Captivity, O Lord
Josephine Stephenson Fire, river, garden (world premiere)

Bach’s Cello Suites Nos 1 and 5, performed by the exceptional German-French cellist Nicolas Altstaedt, one of today’s most sought-after and versatile artists, bring moments of purity and introspection. Around these solo meditations, voices from The Carice Singers, praised by The Times for their ‘poised professionalism and beautiful sound’, join in presenting a rich sequence of contemporary choral and instrumental works.

Ben Nobuto’s Sol is a playful ode to the sun and the energy that sustains life, while Dobrinka Tabakova’s Turn our Captivity, O Lord offers a serene plea for renewal and hope. New works by Raquel García-Tomás and Josephine Stephenson explore our fragile relationship with the planet, bringing the programme’s environmental reflections into the present moment.

This event will last approximately 70 minutes, including an interval.

Josephine Stephenson’s work has been commissioned by the Royal Philharmonic Society, through the generous support of an anonymous donor. Raquel Garcia-Tomas’s work has been commissioned by Palau de la Musica and the Royal Philharmonic Society, through the generous support of an anonymous donor.